Trump ‘didn't downplay’ Covid-19 pandemic, Fauci says, after Woodward book claims send critics into frenzy   

9 Sep, 2020    REUTERS/Yuri Gripas

Audio of Donald Trump seemingly downplaying the Covid-19 virus in February has grabbed the nation’s attention, but top doctor Anthony Fauci has pushed back, claiming he never heard the president play down the pandemic.

In the audio, which Trump’s critics have been sharing and dissecting, the president tells journalist Bob Woodward that he knows Covid-19 is “deadly stuff,” but he wants to “always play it down” so he doesn’t create a public panic.

“I still like playing it down, because I don't want to create a panic,” the president says.

Trump also admits that the virus is deadlier than the flu and can be transmitted easily. That very same month, he told citizens the virus is “like the flu.”

Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden has already capitalized on the recording and called it “beyond despicable” and a “dereliction of duty.”

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